Orc Brave Part 3

I've begun constructing the base.  Before I ever started this figure, I began brainstorming what sort of scene he'd be in.  He's got a somewhat different pose for an orc.  In his right had is an ax, but it's down to his side and relaxed, not ready to strike.  His left arm up with a finger outstretched.  Perhaps he's pointing at something or making a challenge.  I decided to go a different route and have him reaching out to gently touch something.  The kit came with a couple scenic accessories (though no true base).  One of those pieces was a small section of tree with a lizard on it.  So I decided to build up a larger tree and have the orc reaching out towards the lizard.  I've only just begun constructing the scene.  I began with some cork for the ground and then twisted together wires to form the body of the tree.  I then pulled them apart at the top for some branches and at the bottom for some roots.  I got it all into position and then glued on the part of the tree with the lizard.  Up next I will take some modeling putty and build the rest of the tree on top of the wire frame.  I'm not much of a sculptor, but hopefully that will be within my ability level!

Orc Brave Part 2

Well, to make up for the slow posts, here's a second update for the orc right on the heels of the first.

Last night I decided to work on the legs.  Here's a look at how they progressed.  I began with a normal base coat.  Then I sketched in the shadows.  And finally I smoothed those out and applied the highlights.  These three photographs where taken under the same lighting conditions, so by comparing the top and bottom image you can get a good sense of how much of the shadows/highlights are painted on and what just comes from the lighting conditions.

Here's a close up of his right leg.  Notice how the biggest range from shadow to highlight is used on the major shapes.  Then, a somewhat smaller contrast range is used to bring out the finer details.

I still want to do a bit more blending around the knee (fade the purple into the green more around the edges) and the toes and white parts of the legs are unfinished.  Once that is done I'm going to go back over the skin and adjust some of the lighting and color.  I want the highlights and shadows to match of the whole figure (some parts need a bit of tweaking).  I will also use some glazes to adjust some of the skin color so the different sections match (my mixes weren't exact).  

Orc Brave Part 1

I've been a bit behind in sharing my latest project here.  Back at the end of last year I was approached by Ouroborus Miniatures to help out with their kickstarter.  They were running a small one to release two 54mm scale orc figures.  They wanted me to paint one of the two figures, the Brave, and write up a painting journal as a stretch goal for their backers.  I like the figures and it sounded like a fun project, so I agreed.  The figures from the kickstarter arrived the other month, so once I was done with my work for the MFCA show I got started on the orc.

The painting journal I'm writing is an exclusive for the kickstarter backers, so I can't share everything on this project.  I can still show you work in progress pictures and fill you in on what I'm doing. But if you're a kickstarter backer, you can look forward to more step by step pictures and a much more detailed discussion of the painting.

In addition to writing the journal, I'm also planning to enter this figure into the 'Eavier Metal 'Eadbanger competition (no reason I can't do both!).  I didn't have time to paint anything for it last year, so nice to have an eligible project this time around.

Okay, on to the orc.  My only other recent orc project has been Redghar (which is still unfinished).  I wanted to use some of the things I learned on that project and stick with a similar style, but switch up the color palette to a more traditional orc look.  I decided on a green more towards the blue-green end of the spectrum.  For the deepest shadows I used Peacock Green mixed 50/50 with Ritterlich Blue.  From there I went to Peacock Green mixed 50/50 with Marine Teal.  Then Meadow Green 50/50 with Surf Aqua.  And finally I added some ghost white to highlight.  The result is, in my opinion, an interesting shade of green.  Here's a look at an earlier stage on the orc next to Redghar.  It's a large resolution image, so you can click on it for a close up view.

Here's a look at my palette with the green mix.  It's goes from the Peacock/Ritterlich mix on the far left up to Meadow Green/Surf Aqua with some Ghost White on the far right.  There are a few spots on the orc where I went all the way up to pure ghost white too.

Over the past weekend I've continued to work on the orc.  Since the earlier image where just the head, neck, and right arm/hand were painting, I've done the back and right arm.  Most recently I've taken on the chest.  Since there's a lot of skin showing, it seems like an overkill of green.  So I decided to paint him in a two-tone look, with white on his belly, under his arms and chin, etc.

I still have some work to do on the skin (besides the legs).  I want to add some additional color to the hands and paint the scars on his back/face.  I also want to tweak some of the highlights and adjust the green shades here and there.  But, he's moving along quite well.  Not too much longer and I'll be ready to start on his clothing and weapons.